Choosing the Engagement Ring

Jul03,2015

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Choosing an engagement ring comes with great responsibility, your future wife will be wearing this ring for the rest of her life, so it’s pretty important to get it right. But don’t fear, we have created this handy little guide to help you through this decision, from carats to settings, to bands to stones we’ve got your back.

Now, we know as men the minute your girlfriend starts talking about fashion, shopping and style in general we tend to switch off, smile and tell her she’s beautiful in whatever she wears. But now is the time to start paying attention. What kind of jewellery does she wear? And don’t just look at the ‘costume’ jewellery she buys from Topshop, we’re talking the real deal, what items of jewellery is she happy to pay an extra quid or two for? Many women will wear a variety of different coloured rings, bracelets, necklaces etc. From Rose Gold to Silver plated, to suit what mood their in or to suit their outfit. You might find, although she loves wearing gold necklaces, she never wears gold rings…only silver. Take note.

The diamond

The Four C’s system is the easiest way to decide what bling should be in the ring.

CutA measurement of how well the stone has been cut to refract the light around the stone. The better the cut, the more the diamond will shine in the light. A well-cut stone can make a diamond look bigger than it actually is.

ClarityBased upon how many imperfections the diamond has, the fewer imperfections the more the diamond will shine, so look for something in the range of ‘SI1’ or ‘SI2’ which means flaws slightly included.

Colour The average diamond will have a white colour to it, but colour can range from the ultra-expensive ‘colourless’ diamond (classified as ‘D’) through to the cheapest, light yellow (classified as ‘Z’).

CaratThe measurement of how heavy the diamond is, the higher the carat, the more the stone weighs and therefore the more expensive it’s going to be. Anything over a one carat diamond will cost you £2,000. So if your budget is £300 – £1,000, you’ll want to aim for something of about 0.60-carat weight.

The Shape

Yep, you will also need to think about the shape of the diamond, most traditionally a diamond will be of a round or square, but you can also get them cut into the shape of a heart or a star!

The Band

White Gold, Platinum, Gold – What will it be? Each type of metal has its pros and cons, and while the more expensive the metal is, the longer it will probably last but it may also dull a lot quicker. Silver tends to be good balance between long lasting quality and maintainable shine. You will also have to think about the shape of the band too